Sex Differences in Emotions

In early infancy emotional expressions are automatic and not yet subject to voluntary control. As children develop and mature, they begin to regulate emotional displays in order to meet personal goals and to meet the demands and expectations of their culture. Culturally prescribed social conventions dictate how, where, when, and to whom specific emotions are expressed. These norms, otherwise known as display rules, are learned culture-specific rules that convey what is socially appropriate or desirable in certain social contexts and underlie the management and regulation of emotional expression (Ekman & Friesen, 1975).

The use of display rules in young North American children has been investigated largely through the administration of a procedure known as the disappointment gift paradigm (Cole, 1986; Cole, Zahn-Waxler, & Smith, 1994; Saarni, 1984, 1992). In this procedure, children are presented with an unde- sirable gift in the presence of an audience figure, and their emotional responses are recorded. This paradigm takes advan- tage of the commonly understood North American practice of smiling upon receiving a gift even though covertly one may not like the gift (Goffman, 1967).

Existing research with North American children has gener- ally focused on examining the role of age and gender in children’s emotional reactions to a disappointing gift situation. In addition to age and gender, culture is likely another source of variation in children’s emotionally expressive behaviors. Yet the role of cultural beliefs and norms in guiding expressive behaviors has been largely overlooked in investigations of children’s emotional development (Parke, 1994; Rubin, 1998; Saarni, 1998, 1999). In the present study, the role of age,

gender, and culture in children’s ex ing disappointment is examined.

With regard to age, research rat the finding that children’s know increases during the elementary sch 1986; Saarni, 1979; Underwood, C Zeman & Garber, 1996). Fewer con reported regarding developmental d display rules (Cole, 1986; Cole et 1992). These discrepant findings m logical considerations, including t samples studied, the use of diff schemes, and procedural variations tion. One goal of the present stu equivocal findings by examining dev children’s emotional responses f induction. Based on research indica display rules in older children, it wa children would be more likely than disappointment with positive expre undesirable gift.

With regard to gender, research su able to manage their emotions and disappointment with positive affect. found that among third-, fifth-, an boys and girls said that they would fe girls reported that they would use often than boys. Consistent with this studies of elementary school children disappointment, which report that

International Journal of Behavioral Development 2007, 31 (2), 161–169

http://www.sagepublications.com

© 2007 The International Society for the Study of Behavioural Development

Correspondence concerning this article should be directed to Patricia Garrett-Peters Ph.D., Center for Developmental Science, 100 East

Franklin Street, CB # 8115, University Hill, NC 27599–8115, USA; e-mail: gar

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

DOI: 10.1177/0165025407074627

Cross-cultural differences in children’s emotional reactions to a disappointing situation

Patricia T. Garrett-Peters University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA

Nathan A. Fox University of Maryland at College Park, USA

Cross-cultural differences in emotional expressions following disappointment were examined in 59 Chinese American (CA) and 58 European American (EA) children. Children aged four or seven participated in a disappointing gift situation. Dimensions of expressive behaviors following disappointment were coded and included positive, negative, social monitoring, and tension behav- iors. Significant main effects emerged for ethnicity and age, with EA children and older children demonstrating more positive behaviors than CA children and younger children, respectively. Younger children also demonstrated significantly more negative behaviors than older children. This main effect was qualified by a nearly significant age by ethnicity interaction, indicating developmental differences in the negative expressions for the EA group, but not for the CA group. Among the CA group, child adaptation of Western values was inversely associated with negative expressions, and a positive trend was found for positive expressions. Statistical trends were also found in which boys demonstrated more negative behaviors than girls and in which EA children demonstrated more total expressive behaviors than CA children. Implications of these findings are discussed with regard to cultural and familial processes, as well as cultural variation in children’s cognitions about emotions.

Keywords: Chinese American; cross cultural differences; disappointment paradigm; emotional reactions

pressive behaviors follow-

her consistently supports ledge of display rules

ool years (Gnepp & Hess, oie, & Herbsman, 1992; sistent findings have been ifferences in actual use of al., 1994; Saarni, 1984, ay be due to methodo-

he various ages of the erent behavioral coding in disappointment induc- dy was to address these elopmental differences in

ollowing disappointment ting greater knowledge of s hypothesized that older younger children to mask ssions upon receiving an

ggests that girls are better are more likely to mask Underwood et al. (1992)

d seventh-grade children, el angry equally often, but facial display rules more finding are observational ’s emotional responses to

girls demonstrate fewer

of North Carolina, Chapel [email protected]

negative expressions than boys (Davis, 1995; McDowell, O’Neil, & Parke, 2000; Saarni, 1984), and are more likely to mask negative affect with positive expressions (Cole, 1986; Garner & Power, 1996). A second goal of the present study was to examine gender differences in children’s emotional responses to a disappointment situation. Consistent with previous research, it was hypothesized that females would be more likely than males to mask disappointment with positive expressions (Cole, 1986; Saarni, 1984).

Although research has been conducted examining the role of age and gender in children’s emotional reactions vis-à-vis the disappointment paradigm, comparable studies have not been conducted to address the role of culture in children’s emotional responses. The present study represents one of the first to assess children’s observable expressive behaviors in a disappointment situation among culturally distinct groups of children, namely, those of either European American (EA) or Chinese American (CA) descent. Kagitcibasi Kagitcibasi

Culture has been defined as “the set of attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors shared by a group of people, com- municated from one generation to the next” (Matsumoto, 1997, p. 5). Culture shapes one’s emotional experience and expression, and it provides meaning to both intended and demonstrated behavior and to consequences associated with behavior, including emotional responses (Kagitcibasi, 1996). Markus and Kitayama (1991) argue that the very nature of the self-system is shaped by one’s culture, with Western cultures fostering an independent construal of self, and Asian cultures fostering an interdependent construal of self. These divergent views of self have implications for emotional activity and experience (Markus & Kitayama, 1991). For example, within a culture that promotes an independent view of self, ego-focused emotions that emphasize an individual’s own needs and desires (e.g., anger, frustration, and pride) may be expressed and experienced more frequently because they reinforce the self as an independent autonomous being. In contrast, other-focused emotions that highlight interpersonal connectedness (e.g., sympathy and shame) may be expressed and experienced more frequently within a culture that fosters an interdependent view of self.

Differences in emotional behaviors may be particularly prevalent and most readily detected in comparisons of cultural groups with distinct cultural frameworks such as those represented among the Chinese relative to European Americans (Matsumoto, 1989; Oyserman, Coon, & Kemmelmeier, 2002). The Western cultural framework of European Americans is characterized by an open expression of emotion and the attainment of one’s personal goals as important sources of well-being and life satisfaction (Diener & Diener, 1995; Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Oyserman et al., 2002). Emotions are seen as fundamental to the self and to the perpetuation of social relationships. Within a Western orientation, the expression of negative emotions is tolerated and encouraged as it affirms individuality within a society (Matsumoto, 1992). In the Chinese cultural framework, emotional suppression is supported as an adaptive coping strategy, which stands in contrast to the Western conception of achieving psychological balance through emotional cathar- sis (Chen & Swartzman, 2001; Lin, 1981). The minimization of affective expressions is also promoted by traditional Chinese medicine, which associates excessive emotional activity with organic dysfunction and poor health, and emotional balance with good health (Bond & Hwang, 1986;

Chen & Swartzman, 2001; Hammer, 1990; Kleinman, 1986; Wu, 1982).

Cross-cultural research with both infants and older children provides support for a greater emphasis on emotional and behavioral restraint among the Chinese relative to more Western cultures. For example, Camras et al. (1998) reported that Chinese 11-month-olds demonstrated a longer latency to cry following arm restraint, were less expressive overall, and produced fewer Duchenne smiles (i.e., genuine rather than social smiles) than their Japanese and European American counterparts. Chinese infants are also reported to be less reactive and to show a disposition toward nonexcitability and accommodation to external change relative to EA infants (Kagan et al., 1994; Freedman & Freedman, 1969).

Among older Chinese children, behavioral inhibition is viewed as an index of achievement by their parents and is associated with acceptance by both parents and peers (Chen et al., 1998; Chen, Rubin, & Li, 1995a, 1995b; Chen, Rubin, & Sun, 1992). In contrast, shy-inhibited Canadian children experience social difficulties, and their parents view their inhibition as an indicator of social incompetence (Chen et al., 1995a, 1995b, 1998). Parents of these behaviorally inhibited children report themselves to be higher on parental punish- ment orientation, disappointment, and rejection (Chen et al., 1998). These findings highlight the extent to which behavioral inhibition is regarded as socially immature and psychologically maladaptive in Western cultures (see Rubin & Asendorpf, 1993), and contrastingly, regarded as socially desirable and adaptive in Chinese culture.

In the present study, comparisons are made between two culturally distinct groups, namely EA children and first gener- ation CA children. CA children were studied rather than mainland Chinese due in part to their ready accessibility. Nevertheless, their propinquity does not preclude their legit- imacy in adequately representing traditional Chinese child- hood values and beliefs in contrast to those of European Americans. Research on contemporary Chinese conceptions of childhood socialization provides evidence for the enduring continuity of traditional Chinese child-rearing values and practices (see Wu, 1996). These traditional cultural beliefs regarding childrearing are even maintained in Chinese communities living overseas in Western societies (Lin & Fu, 1990; Wu & Xue, 1995, cited in Wu, 1996). Moreover, because acculturation is a gradual process, first-generation CA children may be more similar to their counterparts in mainland China than to those in the West (Feldman & Rosenthal, 1990). Given the extant research, the behaviors and responses of the CA children who participated in the present study are believed to adequately reflect traditional Chinese values. Yet because individuals are not impervious to outside influences, assessments of both parent and child acculturation were obtained for the CA group to examine possible associations with expressive behaviors.

It was hypothesized that CA children would demonstrate fewer expressive behaviors relative to their EA counterparts following disappointment induction. Specifically, the EA children were expected to invoke the North American display rule of masking negative affect with positive displays, while the CA children were expected to show a less intense affective response and thus relatively fewer positive and negative expres- sive behaviors and fewer expressive behaviors overall.

To summarize, the goals and hypotheses of the present study were:

162 GARRETT-PETERS AND FOX / CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL REACTIONS

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

1 To examine developmental differences in expressive behav- iors following disappointment induction. It was hypothe- sized that older children would demonstrate more positive and fewer negative behaviors than younger children.

2 To examine gender differences in children’s emotional responses to a disappointment situation. It was hypothesized that females would demonstrate more positive and fewer negative behaviors than males.

3 To examine ethnic group differences in expressive behaviors following disappointment. It was hypothesized that EA children would demonstrate more positive and negative expressive behaviors and more overall expressiveness than the CA children.

4 To examine the possible associations between parent and child acculturation and children’s expressive behaviors following disappointment for the CA group. Specifically, it was hypothesized that, as CA children increasingly adapt more to Western values, their expressive behaviors will increasingly resemble those expected from the EA children (i.e., more positive and fewer negative expressions following disappointment).

Method

Participants

Fifty-nine CA and 58 EA children and their mothers from the Washington DC metropolitan area participated in the study. CA participants were comprised of 29 children (14 females and 15 males) between the ages of 4 and 5 years old (M = 4.62 years, SD = .44 years) and 30 children (15 females and 15 males) between the ages of 7 and 8 years old (M = 7.82 years, SD = .42 years) and their mothers. Both mothers and fathers of the CA children were born in either Taiwan or China. Of the 59 CA children, 47 (79.7%) were born in the United States, 8 (13.6%) were born in China, 2 (3.4%) were born in Taiwan, and 2 (3.4%) were born in Canada. Mothers and fathers of Chinese- American children resided in the United States an average of 10.23 years (SD = 4.75) and 11.39 years (SD = 4.96), respec- tively. CA children were recruited from local Chinese-language schools, which they attended on weekends. With the exception of one, all mothers reported their child to be average or above average in their ability to understand spoken Mandarin, and all but three mothers reported their child to be average or above average in their ability to speak Mandarin. A majority of mothers (96.6%) reported that they required their children to speak Chinese at home at least some of the time.

EA participants were comprised of 28 children (13 females and 15 males) between the ages of 4 and 5 years old (M = 4.81 years, SD = .41 years) and 30 children (15 males and 15 females) between the ages of 7 and 8 years old (M = 7.93 years, SD = .24 years) and their mothers. Of the 58 EA children, 57 (98.3%) were born in the United States, and one child was born in Japan. All parents of the EA children were born in the United States, with the exception of one mother who was born in France, and one father who was born in Ireland. EA children were recruited from area day- and after-school care centers. Inclusion in the study was based on the child’s age, child’s developmental status as reported by parent, parent ethnic origin, and parental consent. Participants were not selected or disqualified on the basis of religion or any social or economic qualifications.

Procedures

Two Caucasian females comprised the research team for the EA sample, and two bilingual (Mandarin- and English- speaking) Chinese females comprised the research team for the CA sample. All of the research assistants (RA) were similar in age, which minimized differential emotional responding due to RA age. For the CA sample, all mothers and children spoke Mandarin, and the experimenters spoke Mandarin to the dyads. No children had difficulty understanding or responding to the experimenter’s questions in Mandarin or requested that the experimenter speak English.

Each child participated in a disappointment task (Cole et al., 1994). RA1 showed the child eight possible prizes, which included “good” prizes (e.g., whistles, candy, stickers) and potentially “disappointing” prizes (e.g., broken toys). Each child was asked to rank-order the prizes from their most to their least favorite. The prizes were arranged on a tray so that the first- and last-choice prizes were adjacent. RA1 confirmed the child’s first and last choices, and the child was told that s/he would receive the prize after playing a picture or a math game with RA2. These games were filler tasks and involved identifying elements of a storybook picture (for younger children) or solving simple math problems (for older children). RA1 left the room after stating that she would leave the prize tray just outside the door so that RA2 could retrieve the prize for the child.

After the child completed the filler task, RA2 told the child that she would retrieve his or her prize. She then left the room and returned with the last-ranked prize, which remained hidden until it was placed in front of the child. After gift presentation, RA2 remained in the room acting busy with paperwork. She remained neutral in affect so as not to influ- ence the child’s emotional behavior, repeated any verbaliza- tions made by the child in a neutral tone, and made intermittent eye contact with the child. The child’s facial expressions and upper body movements were video recorded for one minute, after which RA2 left the room. All RAs adhered to the instructions for the protocol, and no data were lost due to RA noncompliance.

RA1 then returned to the room and conducted a debriefing interview. RA1 asked the child which prize s/he received, whether or not the child liked the prize, and how the child felt about receiving the last-choice prize (Cole, 1986; Cole et al., 1994). RA1 then told the child that RA2 must have acciden- tally picked up the wrong prize because the first- and last- choices were next to each other, and RA1 retrieved the prize tray and allowed the child to trade the prize.1

Mothers of CA children also completed a questionnaire about the child’s and her own acculturation from the Cultural and Social Acculturation Scale-CSAS (Chen & Lee, 1996). The CSAS is a bidimensional scale, which permits the assess- ment of a bicultural identity and independent variation in both heritage and mainstream cultural identities. Several theorists

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 163

at Wjbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

1 In some previous studies, the disappointment gift has been presented in a nonsocial condition for half of the sample and a social condition for the other half to assess children’s emotional responses in the presence or in the absence of the gift giver (e.g., Cole, 1986), and more specifically, to examine display rules. In the nonsocial condition, the RA left the room immediately after present- ing the disappointment prize. Only the social condition was used in the present study to permit an examination of the children’s emotional responses in the presence of a culturally-matched RA and to avoid a reduction in power by assign- ing the sample to two different conditions (see also Davis, 1995, Garner & Power, 1996; McDowell & Parke, 2000).

ALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016

favor a bidimensional acculturation model over a unidimen- sional model, which conceives of acculturation or assimilation into the mainstream culture as resulting in a loss of values associated with one’s culture of origin (Berry, 1980; Ryder, Alden, & Paulhus, 2000; Stephenson, 2000). The CSAS provides two separate subscales. Fourteen items reflect one’s adaptation of mainstream Western culture and 12 separate items assess adherence to Chinese culture. Example items from the separate subscales include: “How often do you (does your child) have Caucasian-American (Chinese) friends over to your house?” and “How often do you (does your child) go to a Western (Chinese) Restaurant?”. Response options ranged from 1 (almost never) to 5 (more than once a week). Among the other questions were items that assessed the extent to which the mother and child understand English and Chinese, speak English and Chinese, look at English and Chinese books and magazines, listen to Western and Chinese music, and read and write in English and Chinese. Because most 4-year-olds do not yet read or write, items related to reading and writing in English and Chinese were excluded from the analyses of age differences in child acculturation variables.

Estimates of internal consistency for child adaptation of Western values and child maintenance of Chinese values revealed Cronbach’s alphas of .85 and .61, respectively. Cronbach’s alphas for mother’s adaptation of Western values and mother’s maintenance of Chinese values were .77 and .59, respectively.

Scoring

A behavior coding system developed by Saarni (1984, 1992) was used to measure expressive behaviors following disappointment. The first occurrence of each of 50 discrete behaviors was coded, and behaviors included those related to facial expressions, vocalizations, gazing, and selected body movements. Coding of these behaviors yielded four expressive dimensions: positive, negative, social monitoring, and tension. The positive and negative dimensions represent those behav- iors that are obviously positive or negative, such as a relaxed broad smile or frowning. Behaviors coded as social monitoring are those that represent some attempt at expressive control, such as slight smiling. Responses indicative of nervousness or anxiousness are coded as tension. A total expressiveness score was also created by summing the four expressive dimensions.

Because Saarni’s (1992) behavior coding scheme was developed using Western samples, utilizing this coding system with the CA sample required some extra precautions. After careful review of numerous videotapes and a consideration for the extant literature on behavioral inhibition among the Chinese, a modification of Saarni’s behavioral scoring system was deemed appropriate. The scoring system used in the present study departs from Saarni’s original method in that expressive behaviors were coded for 30 s rather than 10 to 15 s following exposure to the disappointment gift. The rationale behind this longer coding segment was to allow the CA sample sufficient response time given both our observations and previous reports of less reactivity, behavioral inhibition, and longer response latencies in children and infants of Chinese origin (Camras et al., 1998; Chen et al., 1998; Freedman & Freedman, 1969; Kagan, Kearsley, & Zelazo, 1978; Kagan et al., 1994).

Due to equipment failure, disappointment segments of two 7-year-old males (one CA and one EA) were not video

recorded and thus could not be used in the analyses. Three individuals (one who is of Chinese descent), who were naïve to the hypotheses of the study, were trained for the coding of expressive behaviors. Cohen’s kappa (Gottman, 1990) was computed for approximately 25% of the videotaped segments, and satisfactory coder reliability was obtained with kappas ranging from .71 to .85. Scoring disagreements were resolved through discussion. Because the EA coders could not speak or understand Mandarin, incidents of verbalization and verbal tone among the CA children were scored by a Chinese- speaking trained research assistant.

A three-factor, age (2) � ethnicity (2) � gender (2), multi- variate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was conducted to determine group differences in the four expressive dimensions. Bivariate correlations were conducted to determine the strength of associations between acculturation and expressive variables for the CA group. Finally, chi-square analyses were conducted to explore group differences in children’s self- reported emotions following the debriefing questions.

Results

Expressive behaviors following disappointment

To determine group differences in expressive behaviors follow- ing disappointment, a three factor, age (2) � ethnicity (2) � gender (2), MANOVA was conducted on the frequency of the four expressive variables (i.e., positive, negative, social moni- toring, and tension) and overall expressivity. The overall F (Wilks’ lambda = .81) reached significance for a main effect of age only, F(4,104) = 6.18, p < .001.

The univariate analyses revealed no main effects or inter- actions for social monitoring or tension behaviors. For positive behaviors, a significant main effect was found for ethnicity, F(1,114) = 4.10, p < .05. A greater number of positive behav- iors was demonstrated by the EA children (M = 1.81, SD = 1.59) relative to the CA children (M = 1.28, SD = 1.30) following presentation of the disappointment prize. There was also a significant main effect of age, F(1,114) = 16.53, p < .001. Positive expressions were exhibited more often by the older children (M = 2.05, SD = 1.60) than by the younger children (M = 1.02, SD = 1.09). There were no gender differ- ences in the number of positive expressions displayed and no significant interactions.

For negative expressions a significant main effect of age emerged, F(1,114) = 6.58, p < .02. Older children demon- strated fewer negative expressions (M = .36, SD = .69) than younger children (M = .81, SD = 1.09). This main effect was qualified by a nearly significant age � ethnicity interaction, F(1,114) = 3.88, p < .06. Follow-up t-tests indicated that ethnic group differences were present for the older children, t(56) = 2.15, p < .04, but not for the younger children. For the older group, CA children demonstrated more negative behav- iors than did EA children, (M = .55, SD = .74 and M = .17, SD = .60, respectively). Additionally, for the EA group, older children demonstrated fewer negative behaviors than younger children, t(55) = 3.04, p < .005, (M = .17, SD = .60 and M = .96, SD = 1.26, respectively). Older and younger CA children demonstrated similar rates of negative behaviors, (M = .55, SD = .74 and M = .66, SD = .90, respectively). A statistical trend was revealed for gender and negative expressions, F(1,114) = 3.23, p < .08, indicating that boys

164 GARRETT-PETERS AND FOX / CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL REACTIONS

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

tended to demonstrate more negative behaviors than girls (M = .74, SD = .98 and M = .42, SD = .87, respectively).

Finally, a nearly significant main effect of ethnicity was found for total expressivity, F(1,114) = 3.54, p < .07, suggest- ing that the EA group tended to demonstrate more total expressive behaviors than the CA group (M = 5.56, SD = 2.87 and M = 4.64, SD = 2.19, respectively). See Table 1 for a summary of mean frequencies and standard deviations for expressive behaviors.

Acculturation

Scores for the adaptation of Western values and the mainten- ance of Chinese values were obtained for the CA children and their mothers. The means and standard deviations for child

adaptation and maintenance were M = 3.16, SD = .75 and M = 2.55, SD = .46, respectively. The means and standard deviations for mother adaptation and maintenance were M = 3.32, SD = .57 and M = 3.61, SD = .48, respectively. Among mother and child acculturation indices, mother and child adaptation of Western values were significantly correlated, r(59) = .50, p < .000. There were no gender differences in the child acculturation variables, but older children were rated significantly higher than younger children on adaptation of Western values, F(1,52) = 65.25, p < .000 (M = 3.64, SD = .53 and M = 2.45, SD = .59, respectively).

Because age was related to the display of both positive and negative behaviors, a partial correlation controlling for the effect of age was conducted to explore the relation between child adaptation and maintenance and positive and negative expressions. Results revealed a significant inverse association between child adaptation of Western values and negative behaviors, r(55) = –.27, p < .05. A positive trend in the relation between child adaptation of Western values and positive displays was also found, r(55) = .24, p < .07. These associ- ations were not differentiated by child age. Taken together these findings suggest that as children increasingly adapt more Western values, they may demonstrate behaviors more similar to their Western counterparts (i.e., fewer negative and more positive behaviors following disappointment). Child mainten- ance of Chinese values was not associated with either positive or negative expressive behaviors. Bivariate correlations were also used to examine the relations between child acculturation variables and social monitoring and tension behaviors. No significant associations were found.

Bivariate correlations were conducted to examine the relations between mother’s adaptation of Western values and maintenance of Chinese values and her child’s expressive behaviors. No significant correlations were found. However, a nearly significant positive association was found for mother’s maintenance of Chinese values and children’s social moni- toring behaviors, r(58) = .26, p < .06. It should be noted that the significant correlations reported here should be interpreted with caution given the number of analyses conducted and the possibility of alpha inflation.

Self-reported emotion following disappointment

The majority of children (75.7%) acknowledged that they did not get the prize they wanted or that they did not like the prize they received. Pearson’s chi-square analyses revealed that boys more often than girls acknowledged receiving the wrong prize or not liking the prize they were given, χ2 (1, N = 115) = 4.95, p < .05. There were no ethnic group or age group differences in the number of children who acknowledged receiving the wrong prize or who acknowledged not liking the prize. Many children (44.3%) reported experiencing a negative emotion such as not happy, bad, or sad after receiving their last-choice prize. There was no differentiation by ethnicity, age, or gender for children who reported experiencing a negative emotion. Some children (19.1%) reported feeling good or happy about receiving their last-choice prize, and the younger children did so more often than the older children, χ2 (1, N =115) = 5.84, p < .05. There were no ethnic group or gender differences in the number of children who reported feeling good or happy. Other children (17.4%) reported ambiguous feelings such as funny, weird, strange, or confused. This was true more often for the older children than for the younger children, χ2

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 165

Table 1 Mean frequencies and standard deviations of expressive behaviors as a function of age, ethnicity, and sex

Chinese American European American

M SD M SD

Positive 4-year-olds Female 1.07 1.39 1.38 1.12 Male .60 .63 1.07 1.10

7-year-olds Female 1.27 1.10 2.60 1.60 Male 2.21 1.48 2.14 1.99

Negative 4-year-olds Female .57 .85 .62 1.39 Male .73 .96 1.27 1.10

7-year-olds Female .53 .64 .00 .00 Male .57 .85 .36 .84

Social Monitoring 4-year-olds Female 1.21 .80 1.38 1.04 Male 1.20 .86 1.33 .90

7-year-olds Female 1.40 .91 1.60 .99 Male 1.36 .93 1.50 1.10

Tension 4-year-olds Female 1.86 1.41 1.92 1.70 Male 1.07 1.34 1.87 1.69

7-year-olds Female 1.87 1.19 1.60 1.50 Male 1.07 1.27 1.57 1.51

Total Expressivity 4-year-olds Female 4.71 2.37 5.31 2.95 Male 3.60 2.06 5.53 2.42

7-year-olds Female 5.06 1.75 5.80 2.54 Male 5.21 2.39 5.57 3.74

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

(1, N =115) = 15.16, p < .001. There were no ethnic group or gender differences in children’s reporting of ambiguous feelings. Still other children (12.2%) gave neutral responses such as fine or okay when asked about their feelings. There were no ethnic group, age, or gender differences in the number of children who gave neutral responses to questions about their feelings following disappointment.

Finally, all children chose to exchange the disappointment prize for either their first- or second-choice prize. These data generally support the inference that the children were disap- pointed upon receiving their last-choice prize. The lack of ethnic group differences in the self-report of positive and negative emotion following disappointment suggests that the CA and the EA children were equally disappointed as a result of receiving their last-choice prize.

Discussion

A major aim of the present study was to examine cross-cultural differences in children’s emotionally expressive behaviors in the context of a disappointment situation. Given the Chinese cultural emphasis on emotional control (Bond & Hwang, 1986; Potter, 1988) and the Western cultural emphasis on individuality and self-expression (Markus & Kitayama, 1991), CA children were expected to demonstrate fewer emotionally expressive behaviors than their EA counterparts. While this hypothesis was generally supported for overall expressiveness, interesting patterns emerged with regard to positive and negative expressions. As expected, CA children demonstrated fewer positive behaviors than EA children. Surprisingly, among older children, CA children displayed more negative expressions than EA children and displayed negative expressions at rates similar to their younger counterparts. In contrast, older EA children exhibited fewer negative expressions than their younger counterparts. These findings are discussed in terms of cultural and familial processes, as well as cultural variation in children’s cognitions about emotions.

Upon receiving a disappointing gift, a typical North American response is to smile even though one may not like the gift (Goffman, 1967). Consistent with this cultural norm of expression, EA children exhibited positive expressive behaviors to a greater degree than their CA counterparts. Cultural variation in display rules and expected emotional reactions could account for these group differences (Cole, Bruschi, & Tamang, 2002; Ekman, 1972). For example, the pattern of masking disappointment with positive expressions may be a uniquely North American phenomenon. Because experimenters and children were matched for ethnicity in the present study, CA children may have deemed the display of positive expressions inappropriate or unnecessary given the audience figure. This explanation is unlikely, though, given the Chinese cultural emphasis on maintaining interpersonal harmony. It is more likely that cultural variation in parental socialization goals, and in particular, parental strategies of emotion socialization, contributed to these differences. For example, research suggests that Chinese mothers perceive the socialization of socioemotional competence as a hindrance to the achievement of academic accomplishments and filial piety, a primary socialization goal in Chinese culture (Rao, McHale, & Pearson, 2003). Thus, Chinese mothers may be less focused on the socialization of emotion expression and understanding

in their children than EA mothers, who tend to acknowledge emotional experiences and encourage discussions in attempts to promote emotional understanding (Bretherton, Fritz, Zahn- Waxler, & Ridgeway, 1986; Chao, 1995; Chen et al., 1998; Gottman, 1998; Sears & Sears, 2002; Wang, 2001).

Relatedly, cultural variation in mothers’ styles of emotional discourse appears to support emotional development through different mechanisms and thus may serve different functions in different cultures (Wang, 2001; Wang & Fivush, 2005). EA mothers tend to use a “cognitive approach” in the socialization of emotion and to provide rich causal explanations for the antecedents of emotion. This style of emotional discourse likely promotes the child’s development of emotion regulation through emotion understanding. Chinese mothers tend to take a directive role and employ a “behavioral approach”, provid- ing few explanations about the causes of emotions and focusing on teaching lessons and instilling proper conduct. This style of emotional discourse likely promotes the child’s regulation of emotion by emphasizing behavioral expectations and the importance of adapting to social norms. In the context of mother–child emotion conversations, the use of more power assertive strategies (e.g., direct command and prohibitions), coupled with the absence of appropriate explanations about emotions, may render the internalization of expected stan- dards of expressive behaviors and emotion understanding difficult and, hence, the display of appropriate expressions more improbable (cf. Chamberlain & Patterson, 1995; Chen, Dong, & Zhou, 1997; Wang, L., Chen, X., Chen, H., Cui, & Li, 2006). As such, even if positive expressions following disappointment are culturally sanctioned, CA children may be less likely to demonstrate “appropriate” expressive behaviors given cultural differences in emotion socialization practices, which then lead to differences in children’s emotion under- standing and subsequent affective displays. Consistent with this explanation is recent research indicating that EA children have an overall greater understanding of emotional situations than their Chinese counterparts (Wang, 2003; Wang, Q., Hutt, Kulkofsky, McDermott, & Wei, 2006). Emotion understand- ing may thus be a crucial prerequisite for the display of appro- priate emotional behaviors in particular social contexts, such as the disappointing gift situation.

Contrary to our expectation, older CA children exhibited more negative behaviors than their EA peers. Given the Chinese cultural emphasis on emotional restraint (Bond & Hwang, 1986), it was hypothesized that CA children would show relatively few negative expressions. Ethnographic field- work conducted in China offers a possible explanation for this finding (Potter, 1988). Potter reported that emotions were conceived of as secondary and lacking significance in the main- tenance of social order and that expressions of emotion did not elicit any social responses. This perspective suggests that the experience and subsequent expression of emotion may result in few, if any, important social consequences. As such, CA children might express felt negative emotion more readily and with little concern for social repercussions, especially in the context of disappointment, a relatively low valence affective state. This explanation seems to contradict the notion that Chinese culture promotes a heightened concern for emotional control in the service of interpersonal harmony. However, the expression of a negative emotional experience such as disappointment is not as harmful or threatening to social relationships as is the expression of negative affects such as sadness or anger. The extent to which emotional restraint is

166 GARRETT-PETERS AND FOX / CULTURAL DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL REACTIONS

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

endorsed in Chinese culture is likely associated with the valence and intensity of a particular emotional experience.

Cultural differences in children’s understanding of emotion situation knowledge might also account for the display of negative expressions by the older CA children. As mentioned previously, Chinese children demonstrate less mastery of emotion knowledge and understanding relative to their EA counterparts, and this is particularly true for negative emotions (Wang, 2003). In the context of a disappointing gift situation, negative emotions may be experienced by the recipient and, if those negative emotions are displayed, also by the gift giver. CA children may have understood less well the potential emotional outcomes of the disappointing gift situation with respect to their own and the gift giver’s negative emotions. Finally, relatively high rates of behavioral inhibition observed among Chinese children may lead to an interpretation of the laboratory experience as a highly stressful event, thus resulting in the greater experience and expression of negative affect (Chen et al., 1998).

Interestingly, older CA children exhibited negative expressions at rates similar to younger children, whereas older EA children demonstrated fewer negative expressions than their younger counterparts. This finding is consistent with reports that gains in emotion knowledge and understanding occur less rapidly for Chinese children relative to their EA counterparts (Wang, 2003; Q. Wang et al., 2006) and once again highlights the importance of emotion knowledge and understanding as potential precursors in the display of appro- priate expressive behaviors. Additionally, specific cultural patterns of socialization also appear to affect the age at which emotion understanding emerges. Joshi and MacLean (1994) found that preschool-aged Indian girls understood the distinc- tion between felt and expressed emotion earlier than Indian boys and British boys and girls. Likewise, Chinese and EA parents may exert socialization pressure during different developmental periods to meet the socialization goals mentioned earlier. Indeed, by the end of the toddler period, North American parents expect their children to demonstrate emotional and behavioral self-regulation skills that support self-sufficient behavior (Cicchetti, Ganiban, & Barnett, 1991; Kopp, 1982). In contrast, Chinese parents believe that very young children have not yet reached the “age of under- standing”, and therefore, parents are often indulgent towards their young children (Ho, 1986).

Findings from the present study highlight the potential influence of acculturation on children’s emerging emotional repertoires. As expected, children’s adaptation of Western values was associated with patterns of expressive behaviors similar to their EA counterparts (i.e., more positive and fewer negative expressions). However, child maintenance of Chinese values was not related to expressive behaviors. These findings provide some support for a bidimensional model of accultur- ation that allows for children’s independent identification with heritage and mainstream cultures (Ryder et al., 2000). Co- existing cultural identities can present young children with unique challenges as they develop skills that allow them to quickly and smoothly transition from one cultural mode to another. This may be especially true for children’s acquisition of emotion knowledge and understanding and the regulation of emotional experience and expression given that advances in these domains often require attention to implicit and subtle social cues. Future research examining how young immigrant children learn to negotiate the emotional demands of two

divergent cultures will be particularly interesting for those embedded within a dominant culture whose emotional frame- work differs so drastically from their native culture, such as those of the Chinese and Westerners. Equally important will be an examination of the relation between variations in children’s skill at negotiating these demands and potential positive or negative social consequences.

Results from the present study provide evidence for developmental differences in the demonstration of culturally appropriate emotional displays. Relative to younger children, older children demonstrated more positive displays and, for the EA group, fewer negative displays. Developmental maturity with respect to social and cognitive abilities aids in children’s knowledge, understanding, and subsequent utilization of display rules (Gnepp & Hess, 1986; Saarni, 1979; Underwood et al., 1992; Zeman & Garber, 1996). Older children are also exposed to more indirect socializing agents (e.g., teachers and peers) and have more opportunities to observe and model expressive behaviors of other individuals. Increasing pressures from these socializing agents, especially during the elementary school years, may facilitate the internalization of appropriate display rule use (Cole et al., 1994). Moreover, as children mature, they are more cognitively capable of processing and internalizing social norms of expression, and they are more able to monitor their own emotionally expressive behaviors to ensure compliance with social expectations.

In some studies employing the disappointment paradigm, girls have been shown to demonstrate more positive behaviors (Cole, 1986; Garner & Power, 1996; McDowell et al., 2000) and fewer negative behaviors than boys (Davis, 1995; McDowell et al., 2000; Saarni, 1984). Both sets of findings are indicative of the greater likelihood of girls than boys to use the display rule of minimizing negative affect and masking that negative affect with positive displays during disappointment. Surprisingly, gender differences were only moderately supported in the present study with girls demonstrating fewer negative behaviors than boys. No gender differences were found for positive expressions. One explanation for the failure to replicate the significance found in previous research may be attributed in part to the extension of the coding epoch employed in the present study. To enhance the cultural sensi- tivity of the coding system, expressive behaviors were coded for 30 s rather than 10 to 15 s as in previous disappointment studies. The rationale for this modification stems from research indicating longer response latencies and emotional inhibition in Chinese samples (e.g., Camras et al., 1998; Chen et al., 1998). Lengthening the coding epoch may have diluted the ability to detect gender differences in expressive behaviors. While there is some evidence that brief segments of expressive behaviors accurately reflect expressive behaviors over longer durations (e.g., Ambady & Rosenthal, 1992), results from the present study do not support this position. Other possible explanations for similar rates of expressive behaviors for boys and girls over a longer coding epoch are that: (a) girls may demonstrate leakage of negative expressions over time; (b) boys may demonstrate more positive expressions over time; or (c) both.

The above findings illustrate the potential complexities and constraints introduced when using a Western-derived behav- ioral coding system cross-culturally. In future investigations, it is important that coding systems are developed by cross- cultural collaborators who work collectively to determine which behaviors and expressions are emotionally meaningful

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 167

at WALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016jbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

in each culture. Future studies should also examine children’s emotional reactions in the presence of different audience members. Ekman and Friesen (1969) have suggested that the appropriateness of display rule use in various social contexts is largely determined by cultural norms that take into account the characteristics of the displayer (e.g., status, role, sex, age, ethnicity), as well as those of other persons present when the display is evoked. Indeed, Zeman and Garber (1996) found that children reported that they would control their emotional expressions more in the presence of a peer than with either their mother or father. Those children who use display rules appropriately receive higher ratings from their teachers and peers on measures of social competence (Garner, 1996; Jones, Abbey, & Cumberland, 1998; McDowell et al., 2000; McDowell & Parke, 2000). If CA children do not use appro- priate emotional displays with their North American teachers and peers, these children may be perceived as less socially competent and mature, and this perception may help set the stage for less than optimal future social interactions. Further, studies of emotional displays in which the audience figure is varied will provide useful information regarding the flexibility of children’s voluntary emotional control in various social contexts. Future studies should also assess the actual experi- ence of emotion through the use of multiple physiological measures (e.g., salivary cortisol, heart rate, etc.) to ensure that emotion induction attempts were indeed successful. Lewis, Ramsay, and Kawakami (1993) found an inverse association between emotional expressivity and cortisol reactivity in infants. These findings highlight the possible incongruence between affective experience and behavioral expression and the importance of incorporating multiple physiological assess- ments into investigations in which emotional experience is inferred.

Although the present study represents one of the first known to observe cultural differences in the emotional reactions of young children, establishing the existence of these differences is merely the first step. To better understand the origins of these differences, it will be important to investigate the ways in which cultural–emotional frameworks affect parental values, beliefs, and expectations about children’s emotional expression and control and, in turn, how these values, beliefs, and expec- tations influence both implicit and explicit emotion socializa- tion strategies. The nature of this crucial input will likely influence the specific aspects of an emotional experience to which children attend, process, and ultimately internalize to inform their own understanding of emotions and subsequent affective functioning.

168 GARRETT-PETERS AND FOX / CULTURAL

References

Ambady, N., & Rosenthal, R. (1992). Thin slices of expressive behaviors as predictors of interpersonal consequences: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 111, 256–274.

Berry, J.W. (1980). Acculturation as varieties of adaptation. In A. Padilla (Ed.), Acculturation: Theory, models and new findings (pp. 9–25). Boulder, CO: Westview Press.

Bond, M., & Hwang, K. (1986). The social psychology of the Chinese people. In M. Bond (Ed.), The psychology of the Chinese people (pp. 213–266). Hong Kong: Oxford University Press.

Bretherton, I., Fritz, J., Zahn-Waxler, C., & Ridgeway, D. (1986). Learning to talk about emotions: A functionalist perspective. Child Development, 57, 529–548.

Camras, L.A., Oster, H., Campos, J., Campos, R., Ujiie, T., Miyake, K., et al. (1998). Production of emotional facial expressions in European-American, Japanese, and Chinese infants. Developmental Psychology, 34, 616–628.

at Wjbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

Chamberlain, P., & Patterson, G.R. (1995) Discipline and child compliance in parenting. In M.H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting,Vol. 4 Applied and practical parenting (pp. 205–225). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Chao, R.K. (1995). Chinese and European American cultural models of the self reflected in mothers’ childrearing beliefs. Ethos, 23, 328–354.

Chen, X., Dong, Q., & Zhou, H. (1997). Authoritative and authoritarian parent- ing practices and social and school adjustment. International Journal of Behav- ioral Development, 20, 855–873.

Chen, X., Hastings, P.D., Rubin, K.H., Chen, H., Cen, G., & Stewart, S.L. (1998). Child-rearing attitudes and behavioral inhibition in Chinese and Canadian toddlers: A cross-cultural study. Developmental Psychology, 34, 677–686.

Chen, X., & Lee, B. (1996). The cultural and social acculturation scale (child and adult version). Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario.

Chen, X., Rubin, K.H., & Li, B. (1995a). Social and school adjustment of shy and aggressive children in China. Development and Psychopathology, 7, 337–349.

Chen, X., Rubin, K.H., & Li, B. (1995b). Depressed mood in Chinese children: Relations with school performance and family environment. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 63, 938–947.

Chen, X., Rubin, K.H., & Sun, Y. (1992). Social reputation and peer relation- ships in Chinese and Canadian children: A cross-cultural study. Child Develop- ment, 63, 1336–1343.

Chen, X., & Swartzman, L. (2001). Health beliefs and experiences in Asian cultures. In S.S. Kazarian & D.R. Evans (Eds.), Handbook of cultural health psychology (pp. 391–410). New York: Academic Press.

Cicchetti, D., Ganiban, J., Barnett, D. (1991). Contributions to the study of high-risk populations to understanding the development of emotion regu- lation. In J. Garber & K.A. Dodge (Eds.), The development of emotion regulation and dysregulation (pp. 15–48). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Cole, P.M. (1986). Children’s spontaneous control of facial expression. Child Development, 57, 1309–1321.

Cole, P.M., Bruschi, C.J., & Tamang, B.L. (2002). Cultural differences in children’s emotional reactions to difficult situations. Child Development, 73, 983–996.

Cole, P.M., Zahn-Waxler, C., & Smith, K.D. (1994). Expressive control during a disappointment: Variations related to preschoolers’ behavior problems. Developmental Psychology, 30, 835–846.

Davis, T.L. (1995). Gender differences in masking negative emotions: Ability or motivation? Developmental Psychology, 31, 660–667.

Diener, E., & Diener, M. (1995). Cross-cultural correlates of life satisfaction and self-esteem. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 653–663.

Ekman, P. (1972). Universal and cultural differences in facial expressions of emotion. In J. Cole (Ed.), Nebraska symposium on motivation, 1971 (pp. 207–283). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

Ekman, P., & Friesen, W.V. (1969). The repertoire of nonverbal behavior: Categories, origins, usage, and coding. Semiotica, 1, 49–98.

Ekman, P., & Friesen, W.V. (1975). Unmasking the face. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Feldman, S.S., & Rosenthal, D.A. (1990). The acculturation of autonomy expec- tation in Chinese high schoolers residing in two Western nations. International Journal of Psychology, 25, 259–281.

Freedman, D.G., & Freedman, N.A. (1969). Differences in behavior between Chinese-American and European-American newborns. Nature, 224, 1227.

Garner, P.W. (1996). The relations of emotional role-taking, affective/moral attributions, and emotional display rule knowledge to low-income school-age children’s social competence. Applied Developmental Psychology, 17, 19–36.

Garner, P.W., & Power, T.G. (1996). Preschoolers’ emotional control in the disappointment paradigm and its relation to temperament, emotional knowl- edge, and family expressiveness. Child Development, 67, 1406–1419.

Gnepp, J., & Hess, D.L.R. (1986). Children’s understanding of verbal and facial display rules, Developmental Psychology, 22, 103–108.

Goffman, I. (1967). Interaction ritual. Chicago: Aldine. Gottman, J.M. (1990). Sequential analysis: A guide for behavioral researchers. New

York: Cambridge University Press. Gottman, J.M. (1998). Raising an emotionally intelligent child. New York: Fireside. Hammer, L. (1990). Dragon rises, red bird flies: Psychology, energy, & Chinese

medicine. New York: Station Hill Press. Ho, D.Y.F. (1986). Chinese pattern of socialization: A critical review. In M.H.

Bond (Ed.), The psychology of the Chinese people (pp. 1–37). New York: Oxford University Press.

Jones, D.C., Abbey, B.B., & Cumberland, A. (1998). The development of display rule knowledge: Linkages with family expressiveness and social competence. Child Development, 69, 1209–1222.

Joshi, M.S., & MacLean, M. (1994). Indian and English children’s understand- ing of the distinction between real and apparent emotion. Child Development, 65, 1372–1384.

DIFFERENCES IN EMOTIONAL REACTIONS

ALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIOR

Kagan, J., Arcus, D., Snidman, N., Feng, W.Y., Hendler, J., & Greene, S. (1994). Reactivity in infants: A cross-national comparison. Developmental Psychology, 30, 342–345.

Kagan, J., Kearsley, R.B., & Zelazo, P.R. (1978). Infancy: Its place in human development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Kagitcibasi, C. (1996). Family and human development across cultures: A view from the other side. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Kleinman, A. (1986). Social origins in distress and disease. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Kopp, C. (1982). Antecendents of self-regulation: A developmental perspective. Developmental Psychology, 18, 199–214.

Lewis, M., Ramsay, D.S., & Kawakami, K. (1993). Differences between Japanese infants and Caucasian American infants in behavioral and cortisol response to inoculation. Child Development, 64, 1722–1731.

Lin, C.C., & Fu, V.R. (1990). A comparison of child-rearing practices among Chinese, immigrant Chinese, and Caucasian-American parents. Child Development, 61, 429–433.

Lin, K.M. (1981). Traditional Chinese medical beliefs and their relevance for mental illness and psychiatry. In A. Kleinman & T.Y. Lin (Eds.), Normal and abnormal behavior in Chinese culture (pp. 95–111). Dordrecht: D. Reidel.

Markus, H.R., & Kitayama, S. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 20, 568–579.

Matsumoto, D. (1989). Cultural influences on the perception of emotion. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 20, 92–105.

Matsumoto, D. (1992). American-Japanese cultural differences in the recog- nition of universal facial expressions. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 23, 72–84.

Matsumoto, D. (1997). Culture and modern life. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. McDowell, D.J., O’Neil, R., & Parke, R.D. (2000). Display rule application in a

disappointing situation and children’s emotional reactivity: Relations with social competence. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 46, 306–324.

McDowell, D.J., & Parke, R.D. (2000). Differential knowledge of display rules for positive and negative emotions: Influences from parents, influences on peers. Social Development, 9, 415–432.

Oyserman, D., Coon, H.M., & Kemmelmeier, M. (2002). Rethinking indi- vidualism and collectivism: Evaluation of theoretical assumptions and meta- analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 3–72.

Parke, R.D. (1994). Progress, paradigms, and unresolved problems: A commen- tary on recent advances in our understanding of children’s emotions. Merrill- Palmer Quarterly, 40, 157–169.

Potter, S.H. (1988). The cultural construction of emotion in rural Chinese social life. Ethos, 16, 181–208.

Rao, N., McHale, J.P., & Pearson, E. (2003). Links between socialization goals and child-rearing practices in Chinese and Indian mothers. Infant and Child Development, 12, 475–492.

Rubin, K.H. (1998). Social and emotional development from a cultural perspec- tive. Developmental Psychology, 34, 611–615.

at Wjbd.sagepub.comDownloaded from

Rubin, K.H., & Aspendorpf, J. (1993). Social withdrawal, inhibition, and shyness in childhood. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Ryder, A.G., Alden, L.E., & Paulhus, D.L. (2000). Is acculturation unidimen- sional or bidimensional? A head-to-head comparison in the prediction of personality, self-identity, and adjustment. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 49–65.

Saarni, C. (1979). Children’s understanding of display rules for expressive behavior, Developmental Psychology, 15, 424–429.

Saarni, C. (1984). An observational study of children’s attempts to monitor their expressive behavior, Child Development, 55, 1504–1513.

Saarni, C. (1992). Children’s emotional-expressive behaviors as regulators of others’ happy and sad emotional states. In N. Eisenberg & R.A. Fabes (Eds.), New directions for child development Vol. 55: Emotion and its regulation in early development (pp. 91–106). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Saarni, C. (1998). Issues of cultural meaningfulness in emotional development. Developmental Psychology, 34, 647–652.

Saarni, C. (1999). The development of emotional competence. New York: The Guilford Press.

Sears, W., & Sears, M. (2002). The successful child:What parents do to help their children turn out well. New York: Little Brown.

Stephenson, M. (2000). Development and validation of the Stephenson Multi- group Acculturation Scale (SMAS). Psychological Assessment, 12, 77–88.

Underwood, M.K., Coie, J.D., & Herbsman, C.R. (1992). Display rules for anger and aggression in school-age children. Child Development, 63, 366–380.

Wang, L., Chen, X., Chen, H., Cui, L., & Li, M. (2006). Affect and maternal parenting as predictors of adaptive and maladaptive behaviors in Chinese children. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 30, 158–166.

Wang, Q. (2001). “Did you have fun?”: American and Chinese mother–child conversations about shared emotional experiences. Cognitive Development, 16, 693–715.

Wang, Q. (2003). Emotion situation knowledge in American and Chinese preschool children and adults. Cognition and Emotion, 17, 725–746.

Wang, Q., & Fivush, R. (2005). Mother–child conversations of emotionally salient events: Exploring the functions of emotional reminiscing in European- American and Chinese families. Social Development, 14, 473–495.

Wang, Q., Hutt, R., Kulkofsky, S., McDermott, M., & Wei, R. (2006). Emotion situation knowledge and autobiographical memory of Chinese, immigrant Chinese, and European American 3-year-olds. Journal of Cognition and Development, 7, 95–118.

Wu, D.Y.H. (1982). Psychotherapy and emotion in traditional Chinese medicine. In A.J. Marsella & G.M. White (Eds.), Cultural conceptions of mental health and therapy (pp. 285–301). Dordrecht: D. Reidel.

Wu, D.Y.H. (1996). Chinese childhood socialization. In M.H. Bond (Ed.), The handbook of Chinese psychology (pp. 143–154). New York: Oxford University Press.

Zeman, J., & Garber, J. (1996). Display rules for anger, sadness, and pain: It depends on who is watching. Child Development, 67, 957–973.

AL DEVELOPMENT, 2007, 31 (2), 161–169 169

ALDEN UNIVERSITY on March 18, 2016